The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-02-14
SERVICES AT THE CHURCHES
Rev. DR.. Courtney, the Missioner,
! breaches to Three Large Audiences.
DR.. Mclleod's Discourse on Murders of Various
: Kinds-The Silly Sentimentalism Of Miss
Van Zandt--0ther Religious Services.
DIR. CoURTNEY's SERVICES.

DIR. COURTNEY'S SERVICES.
Large Congregations Attend His Three SUM-
day Meetings-His Sermon to- Men.
An immense congregation crowded into the
great nave of st. Pauls Church yesterday morn
ing to hear the stirring preaching Of DR.. Court
ney The sermon was on the example of Christ's
sufferings and a strong argument for the
vicarious sufferings of Christ for man. and was
illustrated by the sufferings that attend human
life. Two propositions were advanced namely:
That suffering is inherent in human life-a COM
poundpart of it, and vicarious suffering is in
herent in human life.
beautiful illustration was that of the father
who hears the cry of his new born son, and that
first cry is the passing knell of the mother. Did
that mother suffer for hersef2 No, but amid all
her suffering she joyed that ''man-child was
born into the world"
At o'clock p. M. Dr. Courtney preached from
the text "One thing know, that whereas was
blind now / see"-St John tx, %. This
sermon to men only, and was heard by large
congregation. You think it a great pleasure"
said the preacher, ito lift up your eyes into
the starry night and see what seems like SO many
angelic eyes looking down upon you You look
upon the beauty with which God paints the east
srn and western skies. You stand upon a crag
and look down upon the restless ocean lifting
mp its hands to God aud beating against the
rocks with endless roar of praise. You look at
fAe beauty of mountain, and lake, and river, and
rock, and occasionally you are in coigne of
vantage and see before you in some great polit-
tcal or religious gathering the thousands of
faces the flashing eyes Of great
concourse OF men and women. Such sights as
these wonderful and inspiring. but to all
such as these the poor man in the text was blind.
There is blindness OF another kind. man
may look about him and observe people inter
ested in some thing he knows nothing about and
= he says don't sec what interests these people,
T1e may egen 60 to church and mingle with the
worshipers, and see them pray and hear them
sing; but what says he. are they aboutl l
don't see anything to pray to. There's cross,
but they do not pray to that cannot see what
they doing You tell him of Jesus Christ,
but he says, i don't see anything but man dy
Ing for the truth of mis- doctrine I can't see
anything in that-Tm blind. How can such
man get his sight2 He must go to the pool of
Sloan, which is Gods holy word, and get from
there the clay and spttle Of Gods love and grace
and wash it into his eyes; and thon coming regu-
larly to church and &c king Gods blessing on his
the text, Whereas was blind, now / see.'"
The attending clergy at Dr. Courtney's serv-
ice at St PauPs Church, last night, were Bishop
D. b. Kniekerbacker. Drs Bradley and Jenckes,
Faude, OF Michigan City, and Rev. Pittineer, of
GAINESVILLE, O. DR.. Courtney preached from the
teT. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they
shall SEQ God."-Matthew v, g. In beginning,
the Doctor said 'Of all things are to avoid
that most dangerous of all mistakes that the
Lord Jesus Christ, in the fullness of His mercy
and goodness In prononncing the beatitudes of
the Sermon on the Mount, meant to lay some
burdeusome things on the hearts aud consciences
of His children. He meant e-~tn-aWake all
was rpdlFE n rs; f7ai6 the dignity and
glor: we should reach. Jesus knew that to see
Goss was tho supreme benediction of humanity,
and Told the people how they might attain thereto.
Christ did not hold out anything beyond the
power of any human being to reach BE thou
pure in heart, and thou shalt see God. Let these
words as they ring in your ears. be the trumpet
call 10 that which is glorious, good, noble and
high. Strive by all the power you have, with
the aid and power of almighty God, that you
shall reach to the beatihc vision that fills the
soul with a glory the earthly mind cannot mag
inc. The Christian life is earnest, real, a
true life 1t is not given to the sluggard to the
shiftless. to the evil and the wicked who con
tent to be evil and wicked, but to those who alb
hor wickedness and want to be pure. To these
1t is held out in all its glory, brightness ant
blessedIess Christ says tonight, as to then
with words full of grace from lips which spakt
as never man spake, Blessed are the pure il
heart. for they shall see God
What is it to be pure in heart? There il
negative and positive purity, the body free from
every feshly sin, the the soul free from ever,
gross thought, the spirit free from every un
worthy conception of God. The body that il
stained with ieshly sin is not even negativel,
pure; the mind that is haunted by gross Thoughts
is not even negatively pure; the spirit that en-
tertaiBs unworthy conceptions of God is no
even negatively pure; Yet you have men AM
women who fulfill all three conditions, not O
negative purity, but of positive impurity; VIII
are as dogrnatic about Co., and assert what Fl
is and what He is not. as anything can b
upon the earth. l entreat of You to be mos
ABSOLUTELY scrupulous that no thought that
impure no word that is impure shall be allowe
TO rest in peace In your mind Fathers an
mothers, take your boys and girls and teac
them what are the conditions which God has at
tached to all of the functions of humanity t
which He has made them inheritors and pal
takers. There are boys and girls, young me
and young women who do not know what the
are about, that they slipping down into q
impurity that makes shipwreck of their souls an
brings them into a condition where the beatih
vision Of eternity is shut out, and they go int
the world beyond not to see God. My des
young people, take care of the souls that &c
has given you. Not as talisman to escape til
damnntion of hell, but that you may understan
what hell is and that you may go toward tn.
glory that dignifes humanity and enables us
live like child of God
''Do not be content to be in the mire like til
swine. Don't try. like the prodigal son, to sa
isfy the hunger of your immortal spirit wi,
the husks that the swine do eat The spirit &c
gave to he pure never can be satisfied to be in
pure Pleasure out of evil there may be
first, then sense of misery, of dissatisfaction
can be satisfied until it can be assoied of its 81
If you are in evil and wickedness and beginnir
to hunger for such fruition as that, be assure
that God loves you just as you are. He hat
your sin, your darkness. yoIr impuri
with deadly hatred, but he loves 70
That is the starting point for the ne
life. We always think must make ourselv
q little less bad Jesus came down to us 10 81
God is love- To the Magdalen who came
Jesus He said Your SINS which are many, a
forgiven Do you suppose she ever sim
again7 Not she. If you will come like Mary
ala on1 cit ar His fact He will unfold TO v